'Crisis' Filming on Broadway in Uptown

UPTOWN — The upcoming NBC show "Crisis" is wrapping up filming in Uptown on Tuesday, bringing production crews, faux FBI agents and parking restrictions back to North Broadway.

"Crisis," starring Gillian Anderson and Dermot Mulroney, centers on a hostage crisis that strikes during a field trip by a high school attended by children of D.C.'s elite, including the president's son and the daughter of a corporate CEO, both of whom are kidnapped. The show, created by Rand Ravich and produced by 20th Century Fox, is scheduled for a March 16 debut on NBC.

Monday was the second day of "Crisis" shooting in Uptown. The east side of Broadway from West Leland to West Wilson avenues was lined with trailers, wagons and film equipment.

Actors wearing FBI jackets could be seen in between shooting hanging outside the A-Z Wallis Army Navy Depot, 4647 N. Broadway, which production crews had blocked off for filming. A "District of Columbia Emergency Medical Services" ambulance was parked on Broadway, as was a large truck bearing the seal of the FBI.

On Tuesday, parking is prohibited from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. on the east side of Broadway from Wilson to Leland for filming, according to the office of Ald. James Cappleman (46th). On Sunday and Monday, there were more parking restrictions on both sides of West Wilson Avenue, and various side streets near Broadway.

Uptown resident Kimberly Gonzalez wasn't thrilled with the hulking film trailers taking up so much space on Broadway and at times messing up traffic, and she said she was a little peeved about the several days of parking restrictions.

But she said "Uptown is a cool-looking neighborhood with so many old buildings, and the lakefront right there," and is excited to see her 'hood on television.

"I'll have to see the show now," said Gonzalez, who added she's never heard of "Crisis" before.

Uptown has been chosen as a filming location by an array of TV and film productions in the past year. Local leaders working to build buzz around plans for a booming entertainment district in Uptown say filming in the area helps boost the neighborhood's profile.

"It's always good to show off the neighborhood to a wider audience, and TV is a great way to do that," said Alyssa Berman-Cutler, president of economic development organization Uptown United.

She added that in light of the entertainment district, "it's nice to be part of that."

Last month, hit Showtime series "Shameless," and an upcoming movie, "Hunter," also filmed in Uptown, according to the 46th Ward office. NBC's "Chicago PD" filmed on Broadway in January inside Dalia Food Market, 4661 N. Broadway.

Berman-Cutler said "we know that the repeated productions can be really disruptive to immediately adjacent small businesses," and said her group is working with the Chicago Film Office "to minimize the impact as much as possible."